In the October 2013 issue of the Goffs/Goughs Newsletter, I discussed the search for the parents of George W. Goff (1834 - 1908) of Preston Co., WV. Descendants believed George W. Goff was related to the family of James Goff (1735-1834) who resided in what is now Preston Co., WV. However, Y-DNA results on descendant Danny Goff showed no connection to James Goff. However, there was a match to Thomas Pierson Goff, who also believed he was descended from James Goff. Autosomal DNA tests showed that Danny Goff, the George W. Goff descendant, was related to the James Goff family. This led to the working theory that George W. Goff (1834 - 1908) was a son of a female Goff who descended from James Goff (b. 1735). George W. Goff would have taken his surname from his mother's maiden name under this scenario.

At the time of the article, autosomal DNA test results were pending for Thomas Pierson Goff. The belief was that Thomas and Danny would show up as closely related. The results are now in: much to everyone's surprise, Thomas and Danny are not closely related. However, adding yet another twist is that Thomas is closely related to descendants of the four Goff brothers, of which James Goff was one. To recap:

* Danny Goff and Thomas Goff have family traditions of being descended from James Goff (1735-1834)* Danny Goff and Thomas Goff have closely matching YDNA results* Danny Goff matches one descendant of James Goff with about four or five generations to the common ancestor* Thomas Goff matches at least five descendants of James Goff or his brother John Turton Goff between about four or five generations back* Danny Goff and Thomas Goff are no more closely related than about seven generations prior

The above matching scenario seems to be full of contradictions. The search continues!